Flush DNS

Most operating systems and DNS clients will automatically cache IP addresses and other DNS results, this is done in order to speed up subsequent requests to the same hostname. Sometimes bad results will be cached and therefore need to be cleared from the cache in order for you to communicate with the host correctly. All major operating systems allow you to force this process. Outlined below are the common steps you will need to follow in order to flush your DNS cache.

Make sure that you right click on the command prompt application and choose "Run as Administrator"

Type in the command ipconfig /flushdns

Note: It is also possible to type in cmd into the Windows Vista / Windows 7 start menu search field and then right click on the cmd.exe result instead of having to navigate through the various sub menus.

Windows 98/NT/2000/XP

Flushing the DNS on Windows is an easy process, outlined below is the steps that should be run if you wish to clear your DNS cache.

Open up a command prompt (Start > Run > cmd.exe > OK).

Type in the command ipconfig /flushdns

Apple OS X

Flushing the DNS in Mac OS X is an easy process, but the steps taken will depend on which version of OS X you are running.

macOS Sierra

If you are running Mac OS X 10.11, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up the command terminal.

Run the command sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Mac OS X El Capitan

If you are running Mac OS X 10.11, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up the command terminal.

Run the command sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Mac OS X Yosemite

If you are running Mac OS X 10.10, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up the command terminal.

Run the command sudo discoveryutil udnsflushcaches

Mac OS X Mavericks

If you are running Mac OS X 10.9, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up the command terminal.

Run the command sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Mac OS X Mountain Lion

If you are running Mac OS X 10.8, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up the command terminal.

Run the command sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Mac OS X Lion

If you are running Mac OS X 10.7, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up the command terminal.

Run the command sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder

Mac OS X Snow Leopard

If you are running Mac OS X 10.6, you need to follow the below steps:

Open up a command terminal.

Run the command sudo dscacheutil -flushcache

Mac OS X Leopard and below

If you are running Mac OS X 10.5.1 or below, you need to follow the below steps:

Open a command terminal.

Run the command sudo lookupd -flushcache

Other Operating Systems

Linux

If you are running the nscd Name Service Cache Daemon and wish to flush your DNS cache, then you will need to do the following.

Open up a command terminal (either as root or run step 2 with sudo).

Run the command /etc/init.d/nscd restart

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